Middle School Miniature

Chapter 26, Boundaries and Butter

Max, Jordan, and I had eaten our fill.

Reaching over for the remote, Jordan pointed and silenced the TV. I was snuggled into a nest of blankets that was scrunched up on the couch in between the two guys. To be honest, it was the comfiest that I had been since this whole situation had happened, and I was fading towards sleep at an increasing rate. The video was the last string holding open my droopy eyelids, and it was cut as the video turned off. Above me, I heard a big yawn followed by a sigh. 

"You good on the couch man?" Jordan asked over to Max.

"That'll work for me," a bleary Max responded. 

I heard the two guys getting up and moving around doing whatever was necessary to get ready for sleep. Softly, my mind sank into the blankets around me.

"What should we do with her?"

"hmm?... hmm"

"Yeah."

"Maybe another..."

I half opened my eyes as I was jostled around in my comfy covers. I saw a hand supporting a side of the blanket nest. I was being moved. 

"ehhhh I don't wanna move," I mumble into the blanket. 

The blankets came to a rest and I felt the hands pushing the nest back into form around me, darkness enveloped my area. Feeling warm and safe, I relaxed into a well-needed slumber.

_____

I move the blanket nest under the coffee table like Jordan suggested. Amelia mumbles something in her sleep and my chest squeezes. Resisting the pull to pet her tiny head, I instead tuck the blanket into more of a structured nest around the small sleeping figure. I grab another blanket and form a wall around the nest so that it is harder to see her from the outside. That was my idea. It served a dual purpose, to dim the lights for Amelia to sleep and to keep anyone from accidentally seeing her if someone did come down. Work done, I turned to the remaining blanket Jordan had tossed in my direction before disappearing into his room. I flopped backward onto the couch and laid the blanket over myself. My mind was still lingering on the image of the adorably comfy Amelia, but also my brain insisted on replaying the sound of her scream and the moment my heart sank. My eyes wandered back over to where she slept and I could not release my mind from this fixation. Eventually, I passed out. 

_____

I breathed stiffly in and stretched out. Opening my eyes, darkness, chopped up by faint light and textured by the swaths of blankets surrounding me, greeted my awakening. I was feeling great and well-rested for once. I tugged at my shirt and pants, which, regardless of how well-rested I felt, still gave off that ick of clothes that had truly hit the limit of how many times they could be worn before a good wash was necessary. The smell wasn't unbearable, but I was nearly at the point of having a questionable scent. Running my hands through my hair in an attempt to detangle the mess, I finished doing what I could to appear presentable enough to venture out of my blanket den.

The thick fabric was pushed down and to the sides, as I crawled my way to the outside world. I put my feet down on the squishy carpeted floor and began to look around. Still in Jordan's basement. Though, this was my first time on the floor in this particular room. The lower perspective definitely gave the space a more cavernous appearance. I also noticed the mountain of a couch containing a sleeping giant. The soft wind of Max's breath was audible in the silence of the morning. He slept on his front, and from where I was, I could partially see his messy curly hair almost covering his eyes. His arm was draped over the side of the couch, hand touching the floor. Sweet, now I had an easy way to try and wake him up. 

I walk my way over to the massive hand. How should I do this? I hesitate, this was the same hand that dislocated my shoulder just yesterday. I mean it's just Max, right? A sleepy Max. One Max who won't be thinking about who might be near his hand before doing something drastic when woken up. Hmm. Maybe there is something that I can use to poke or tickle his hand from a distance?